Front sight construction for firearms

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure is directed to a combined guard and mounting for small, fragile lenses positioned upon the muzzle ends of the barrels of guns. The lens guard and mounting function to protect the lens against damage and breakage while in no way detracting from the amount of circumambient light required to give the lens an eye attractive appearance to the shooter aiming the gun. The sight construction is specifically advantageous as a binocular front sight for mounting optical lenses on the muzzle ends of the barrels of shotguns.

United States Patent 1 l 3,91 1,607

Luebkeman Oct. 14, 1975 [54] FRONT SIGHT CONSTRUCTION FOR 3,362,074 1/1968 Luebkeman et Zll. .i 33/243 FIREARMS Primary ExaminerSamuel Feinberg [75] Inventor. George C. Luebkeman, Cleves, Ohio Assistant Exammer c T Jordan [73] Assignee: W. R. Weaver Company, El Paso,

Tex. {57} ABSTRACT 2 Filed; Jam 2 19 4 The present disclosure is directed to a combined Appl. No.: 437,369

guard and mounting for small, fragile lenses positioned upon the muzzle ends of the barrels of guns. The lens guard and mounting function to protect the lens against damage and breakage while in no way detracting from the amount of circumambient light required to give the lens an eye attractive appearance to the shooter aiming the gun. The sight construction is specifically advantageous as a binocular front sight for mounting optical lenses on the muzzle ends of the barrels of shotguns.

6 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures U.S. Patent Oct. 14, 1975 3,911,607

FRONT SIGHT CONSTRUCTION FOR FIREARMS This invention relates to front sights for firearms and more particularly to improvements in the constructions of these sights which are commonly very small and fragile.

An object of the invention is to provide a combined guard and mounting for the fragile front sight members of firearms which functions to protect the sight members against breakage during use of the firearms upon which the sights are mounted.

Another object of the invention is to provide a binocular front gun sight mount for an optical lens which protects said lens against damage by a novel guard means that in no way detracts from the amount of circumambient light required to give the lens an eye attractive appearance to the shooter.

A further object of the invention is to provide in a binocular front sight having the foregoing characteristics a lens mount construction that is simple and inexpensive to manufacture but is rugged and susceptible of exact adjustment on the barrels of guns to be used for binocular shooting at moving targets.

Other objects will become apparent from the following specification taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is an enlarged fragmental, side elevational view of the muzzle of a gun barrel with the front sight of this invention mounted thereon and shown in side elevation.

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the binocular front sight shown in FIG. 1, the gun barrel being broken away.

FIG. 3 is an elevational view of the gun sight shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings taken from the breech end of the gun barrel.

FIG. 4 is a section taken on line 44 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 4 showing a modification of my invention.

FIG. 6 is a fragmental section like FIG. 2 illustrating the manner of preparing the sight shown in FIGS. 1-4 of the drawings for mounting upon a particular gun barrel.

With reference to FIGS. 1-4 of the drawings the numeral I0 refers to the muzzle end portions of conventional single barrel shotguns which may have the usual ribs 11 positioned longitudinally upon the tops of the barrels. The binocular front sight of this invention is like the sights disclosed in my US. Pat. No. 3,362,074, granted Jan. 9, I968 and is adapted to replace the usual iron bead or bar sights; the conventional internally threaded bores 12 for said sights being utilized in part to mount my binocular sight 13 on the ribs 11 of the gun barrels 10.

The binocular front sight 13 comprises a mount 14 having a base 15 that is fixed to the rib ll of the gun barrel 10 by a countersunk head screw 16 which passes through a counterbored hole 17 formed in the base, said screw being threaded in the internally threaded bore 12 in the rib 11. As best shown in FIG. 4 the externally threaded shank 18 of the screw 16 has a smaller diameter than the hole 17, the countersink arrangement between the screw and the base providing a selfcentering connection for the sight on the barrel while the difference in diameters of the screw shank 18 and the hole 17 permits the sight to be mounted on gun barrels having internally threaded bead sight mounting bores of different diameters by the utilization of an appropriate screw.

The base 15 is fixed to the rib by adhesive 19 applied between a substantial area on the bottom face of the base and the top surface of the rib. The mount has side walls 20 and 21 extending upwardly from the breech end portion of the base and a fragile sight member preferrably in the form of a cylindrical optical lens 22 is positioned upon the base 15 and between the side walls 20 and 21, said lens having a solid body composed of a clear plastic, clear optical glass, or the like, that is cemented or otherwise secured to the interior surfaces of the base and the side walls of the mount.

The lens 22 has a convex rear surface 23 with respect to the breech end of the barrel 10 while the opposed end of the lens has a planar surface 24 that has a central portion in the focal point of the lens and which faces the muzzle end of the barrel. A colored minute dot 25 having a diameter of about .007 of an inch is applied to the planar surface 24 of the lens on the optical axis and in the focal point of the convex surface 23 of the lens. A coating of transparent cement 26 is adhered to the planar surface 24 on an area surrounding the dot to cover and protect said dot against deterioration.

A guard 27 integral on the base 15 extends upwardly from the muzzle end of said base in spaced relation to the planar surface 24 of the lens and is given an outline projecting upwardly beyond the longitudinal extension lines of the lens 22. The guard 27 has an opening 127 formed centrally therethrough in axial alignment with the optical axis of the lens to allow access of a dot applicator to said planar surface after the optical axis has been located for the lens 23 while in the mount 14 to thereby accurately position the dot 25 on the planar surface 24 on the optical axis of the lens and to also provide an opening for an applicator that places the coating of transparent cement 26 on the said surface 24. The opening 127 further forms a window in the guard 27 to afford passage of an abundance of circumambient light to the lens when in use on the gun.

With particular reference to FIG. 1 of the drawings the dot-and-dash line 28 represents the vertical surface of a wall, or the like, against which shot guns are most commonly leaned when not in use. In this leaning position of the gun against a wall the guard 27 protects the mounted lens from damage, while said guard, spaced from the lens, will not obstruct the passage of circumambient light to the lens during use of the gun.

In use collimated, colored light rays R (FIG. 4) will be directed by the lens of the front sight to a laterally restricted area at the breech end of the gun, to aid a shooter in the act of aiming the gun with binocular vision to bring the aiming eye into the optical axis of the lens and hence the gun barrel into line with a moving target.

Now with reference to the modified form of the invention shown in FIG. 5 of the drawings it will be noted that the mount 29 has a base 30 and a sleeve 31 integral on the base which encircles the lens 22. An opening 32 is formed in the upper part of the sleeve 31, the rear part of the sleeve being closed by a guard portion 33 having a central window 34 formed therethrough. A pair of cheese head screws 35 mount the ends of the base 30 to the barrel, the shanks 36 of said screws passing snugly through holes 37 in the base and threaded in the bores 12 in the gun barrel rib 11.

As in the fonn of the invention shown in FIGS. 1-4 of the drawings the guard portion 33 of the sleeve 31 is spaced from the lens and protects said lens 22 from being damaged while the window 33 affords a means for the entrance of circumambient light through the guard portion and into the lens.

In FIG. 6 there is illustrated another means of fitting the sight shown in FIGS. 1-4 of the drawings on a variety of gun barrels wherein the numeral 38 refers to a drill centering depression countersunk in the base of the mount 14. A twist drill 39 having the same diameter as the outside diameter of a threaded shank on a countersunk screw to be accepted in the prefonned internally threaded bore in a particular gun barrel is selected to drill out the hole 17 in the base 15; it being noted that the depression 38 will guide the drill 39 to form said hole on the vertical axis of the depression. Thus the depression 38 will provide a means of mounting the sight on different gun barrels each having a preformed sight mounting, threaded bore therein that has a particular internal diameter.

What is claimed is:

1. A front sight for a firearm barrel having a breech end and a muzzle end comprising a mount having a base, means positioning the base of the mount upon the muzzle end of the barrel, side walls extending upwardly from the breech end of the base, a fragile lens sight member positioned on the base between and extending above the side walls, and a guard one-piece with the base and extended upwardly from the muzzle end of the base and spaced forwardly from the muzzle end of the fragile lens sight member, said guard having an outline projecting outside of the longitudinal extension lines of the fragile lens sight member.

2. A front sight for a firearm barrel as set forth in claim 1 wherein the mount positioning means is a hole formed in the base between the guard and the side walls, a screw projecting through the hole and threaded in an internally threaded bore in the muzzle end of the barrel, and an adhesive securing the bottom face of the base to the barrel.

3. A front sight for a firearm barrel as set forth in claim 2 wherein the hole is counterbored and the screw has a countersunk head.

4. A front sight for a firearm barrel as set forth in claim 1 wherein the mount positioning means is a drill centering, countersunk depression formed in the base.

5. A binocular front sight for a firearm barrel as set forth in claim 1 wherein the guard has an opening formed centrally therethrough in axial alignment with the optical axis of the fragile sight member.

6. A binocular front sight for a firearm barrel having a breech end and a muzzle end comprising a mount having a base portion, means positioning the base portion of the mount upon the muzzle end of the barrel, side walls extending upwardly from the breech end of the mount, a cylindrical lens positioned upon the base portion and between the side walls of the mount, said lens having a rear surface convex with respect to the breech end of the barrel and an opposed planar surface facing the muzzle end of the barrel, a colored minute dot on the planar surface of the lens on the optical axis of the convex surface, a transparent coating adhered to the planar surface covering the dot, and a guard portion extended upwardly from the muzzle end of the base portion in spaced relation to the lens and having an outline projecting beyond the longitudinal extension lines of the lens.

it I! l 

1. A front sight for a firearm barrel having a breech end and a muzzle end comprising a mount having a base, means positioning the base of the mount upon the muzzle end of the barrel, side walls extending upwardly from the breech end of the base, a fragile lens sight member positioned on the base between and extending above the side walls, and a guard one-piece with the base and extended upwardly from the muzzle end of the base and spaced forwardly from the muzzle end of the fragile lens sight member, said guard having an outline projecting outside of the longitudinal extension lines of the fragile lens sight member.
 2. A front sight for a firearm barrel as set forth in claim 1 wherein the mount positioning means is a hole formed in the base between the guard and the side walls, a screw projecting through the hole and threaded in an internally threaded bore in the muzzle end of the barrel, and an adhesive securing the bottom face of the base to the barrel.
 3. A front sight for a firearm barrel as set forth in claim 2 wherein the hole is counterbored and the screw has a countersunk head.
 4. A front sight for a firearm barrel as set forth in claim 1 wherein the mount positioning means is a drill centering, countersunk depression formed in the base.
 5. A binocular front sight for a firearm barrel as set forth in claim 1 wherein the guard has an opening formed centrally therethrough in axial alignment with the optical axis of the fragile sight member.
 6. A binocular front sight for a firearm barrel having a breech end and a muzzle end comprising a mount having a base portion, means positioning the base portion of the mount upon the muzzle end of the barrel, side walls extending upwardly from the breech end of the mount, a cylindrical lens positioned upon the base portion and between the side walls of the mount, said lens having a rear surface convex with respect to the breech end of the barrel and an opposed planar surface facing the muzzle end of the barrel, a colored minute dot on the planar surface of the lens on the optical axis of the convex surface, a transparent coating adhered to the planar surface covering the dot, and a guard portion extended upwardly from the muzzle end of the base portion in spaced relation to the lens and having an outline projecting beyond the longitudinal extension lines of the lens. 